PYTHON SOLIDWORKS
INSPIRED BY THE FAMOUS VIDEO TAPE OF THE TACOMA NARROWS BRIDGE
DISASTER IN WASHINGTON, USA IN 1940, I DECIDED TO STUDY THE
EFFECTS OF WIND ON BRIDGE DECKS. I STUDIED HOW THE SHAPE OF
BRIDGE DECKS WERE REACTING TO A STREAM OF AIR. MY RESEARCH IN
FLUID MECHANICS LED ME TO FOCUS MY ATTENTION ON VON KARMAN
INDUCED VORTEX IN THE BRIDGE’S WAKE. I MADE A FULLY FUNCTIONAL
MODEL REPRODUCING THE PHENOMENON OF THE BRIDGE’S DECK
OSCILLATION INDUCED BY VON KARMAN VORTEX. AFTER ANALYZING THE
EXPERIMENTAL RESULTS USING NUMPY GRAPHS, I CONCLUDED THAT VON
KARMAN VORTICES WERE NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR THE TACOMA BRIDGE
FALL, WHICH IS A COMMON MISCONCEPTION IN THE SCIENTIFIC WORLD
“PREVENTING THE EFFECTS OF WIND ON
BRIDGE”, RESEARCH PROJECT (TIPE)